i888. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



37 



small places, to be coinmemied as an effective, 

 simple aid in making a neat Job of the watering: 

 Take a pail or bucket about the size of a Tobacco 

 pail, with a hole in the side as close to the bottom 

 as possible. This hole is to be large enough to ad- 

 mit the small end of a hose coupling, the screw 

 end projecting out, to which a piece of small hose 

 of whatever length reiiuired is attached by a cor- 

 responding screw socket. A light rope is fas- 

 tened to the handle of the pail, and then put 

 through a pulley wheel placed in the rafter. It 

 is a very easy matter to elevate a pail of water 

 and keep it up by tying the cord, then proceed- 

 ing to water or syringe the plants within range. 



Peroxide of Silicate. This substance having 

 been extensively advertised as a superior insecti- 

 cide and fertilizer, we would advise our readers 

 to go slow in buying it, on the authority of 

 analyses, made at the Connecticut and Vermont 

 Experiment Stations, of its composition, show- 

 ing that it contains no silica nor any " great 

 amount of oxygen" (peroxide), being mainly 

 plaster of Paris (gypsum), upon which it depends 

 chiefly tor its fertilizing power, containing four 

 per cent of Paris green. The latter of course 

 renders it fatal to insects; the fraud consisting 

 in giving a high sounding, misrepresenting name 

 to the article, persuading people that it is some- 

 thing remarkable, and selling at an exorbitant 

 price a common mixture that every user can 

 prepare for themselves at a cost of about 65 cents 

 per hundred pounds, instead of paying live 

 dollars, the price asked for the above compound. 



A fortune lies before the person who will give 

 us a Blackberry as large as Kittatinny and hardy 

 as Snyder. It should ripen early and be proUfic; 

 also for the person who gives us a Currant as 

 large as a Houghton Gooseberry, as good as the 

 White Grape, and an abundant bearer; as well as 

 for a man who will improve the Quince till it is a 

 fine dessert fruit, and yet retains its peculiar 

 flavor. The man who has the tact and persist- 

 ence to give us a race of thornless Blackcap 

 Raspberries which produces fruit as fine as Gregg 

 and hardy as Doolittle, will be amply repaid. It 

 is not worth while to expend work on new 

 Strawberries or Potatoes. You are not likely to 

 get any thing finer than we now have, and there 

 is sure to be enough done in that direction; but 

 with a wide-awake horticulturist there will occur 

 openings for work of the sort noted above, that 

 will be sure to bring most liberal compensation. 

 The Fay's Prolific Currant has netted Mr. Fay 

 over $20,000— E. P. P. 



Confasion Among Violets. It is remarkable, 

 says a writer in the Garden, that so few realize 

 the difference between the Parma (dark) and 

 Neapolitan (light) Violets. This occurs from the 

 fact that the Neapolitan is the older and most 

 grown In England, while the Violett« de Parme 

 is so general in the south of France that the in- 

 quiring stranger is assured that there is no other, 

 Neapolitan being only a synonym for De Parme. 

 In some districts, however, the Neapolitan is 

 grown and produces the very finest pale blue- 

 gray flowers in spring. The Panna Violet dates 

 from the days when Napoleon I's wife was 

 called Duchess of Parma. AU who grow the 

 Neapolitan well know how troublesome the run- 

 ners are in summer, and how useless it is to ex- 

 pect much bloom in winter unless these runners 

 are kept off. The merit of the Parma Violet is 

 in its tufted growth and free-blooming qualities, 

 without the special care that the Neapolitan 

 requires; it has few runners, and its flowers, freely 

 borne, open well in winter, so that all who care 

 for winter Violets should try the Parma; many 

 will prefer it to Neapolitan, on account of the 

 simple management required for success. 



How to Grade for Drains. I use two targets, 

 which I will name No. 1 and No. 2 to describe 

 them, and a pole. No. 1. A, is apiece 2)^ inches 

 square by two feet long pointed so as to drive in 

 the ground, two clasps on as shown in cut, for 

 B to slide in. B, one by two and one half inches 

 by two feet long. G, one by two inches, eight 

 inches long, fastened on A with thumb screw D. 

 No. 2. is a piece one by two inches, six feet long. 



B, block two inches square made to slide up or 

 down as is necessary— fastened with thumb screw 



C. Dig ditch deep as desirable at outlet. Set No. I 

 so that arm G extends over ditch. Then take a 

 pole and set up in ditch and slide B down or up 

 on No. 1 till it comes even with top of pole. Next 

 take No. 2 and stick it into the ground several 

 rods back in the opposite direction that the ditch 

 is to run from No. 1, in line with ditch. Now take 

 pole and go ahead about six rods on the line of 

 the ditch and sight from three feet on pole back 



over No. 1 to No. 2 beyond, and slide B on 

 No. 2 up or down as is i-eipiired till you have it 

 in range. Coramonco to digat No. 1 and set pole 

 in the ditch e^•ery foot or two to see whether the 

 top of pole comes in range with target on No. 1 

 and No. 2; when you have dug back to where 

 the pole was sighted from, proceed as before. 

 No. 1 can be leveled with pocket level if groun<l 

 is laid off by a civil engineer. Set targets with 

 grade stakes. Thei-e are a great many tile laid 



One of tJie Pretty Hoop Petticoat Na/rcissuses. 



uneven in grade, which soon fills with mud, the 

 users get discouraged and blame the tile, saying 

 it don't pay.— Drainage and Farm Journal. 



The Hoop Petticoat Narcissuses. These form 

 a most fascinating group of the dwarfer class of 

 Daffodils, bearing as they do a profusion of white 

 or yellow flowers springing from peculiarly 

 clustered, long, grass-like foliage. While their 

 culture is of the simplest character, yet, from 

 their oeing natives of Spain, they require a warm, 

 sunny situation and light, sandy soil . Another 

 point is that they should be taken up and divided 

 every second fall. All of the varieties are worthy 

 of culture, either in pots or the open ground, 

 being of especial value for cut flowers. When 

 pot-grown, by potting early in season, they will 

 easUy bloom by the holidays, and are likely to 

 become popular. The varieties are all hardy if 

 planted five inches deep and given a winter 

 covering, except the Algerian form Corbularia 

 monophyllus,(cit«ii or cUbus). This sort, in pots, 

 has many snow white blossoms, as shown in our 

 illustration, in early winter, on stems three inches 

 or so high, and is a beautiful acquisition to our 

 bulbous plants. Aside from pots, an effective 

 way of growing this or any variety, is in shallow 

 pans or boxes, using a gritty soil, (in pots also,) 

 composed of loam, broken charcoal and spent 

 mortar, and coarse sand. A variety with bright, 

 yellow flowers C. conspicua, is excellent for 

 bedding, pot culture or rockery, blooming very 

 early. In pots place a number in each pot with 

 sandy soil, treating like Tulips. A larger form 

 of the above C citrinus grandiflorus is of a pale 

 lemon color and earlier, excellent for forcing. 

 It is very hardy and unique when grown as 

 a ground work on a carpet of (ilory of the Snow 

 [Chionodoxa lucilia;). A very rare form C. 

 graelsi is similar but shorter, and of a pale sul- 

 phur color. A very neat golden yellow (C. tenui- 

 folium) is rare and distinct. 



New York Fancies in Flowers. 



It is still early for much decorative work, but 

 a few autumn wedding and small receptions are 

 giving work to the florists. Flowere have been 

 comparatively scarce during the earlj' autumn, 

 Roses e.\cepted; they were plentiful enough, but 

 coarser outside stuff, such as the florist depends 

 on for large decorations, was lacking in conse- 

 quence of rough weather. Wild flowers do not 

 seem quite so plentiful as usual either. 



There is but little real novelty in the wedding 

 decorations. A back ground ttf handsome plants 

 forming a semi-circle, is usually made; either 

 arch or canopy in the center of this. When the 

 arch is used, a wedding bell is usually suspended 

 from the centre, but this is rather hackneyed, and 



Is oftfu dispensed with. The canopy is fringed 

 with handsome flowers, and is usually square. 



In decorating rot)ms, much use is made of large 

 vases filled with a mass of handsome flowers, one 

 sort only. A great vase filled with about fifty 

 Beauty Roses, forming a loose hunch, is strik- 

 ingly handsome. Mantel pieces, where consist- 

 ing simply of the one broad shelf, are simply 

 formed into a bank, often bordered by some of 

 the finer Lycopodiums. Many of the modern 

 mantels, being formed like cabinets, do not per- 

 mit of this arrangement; they have to be draped 

 with Asparagus or other light greens, while the 

 recesses contain vuf*es of flowei-s or decorative 

 plants, irregtilarly arranged. Foliage plants are 

 more used than ever; their reign is cei-tainly on 

 the increase, as screens of large Palms arc placed 

 near doors, or shading quiet nooks, while the 

 stiff masses of flowers, which wore both inartis- 

 tic and expensive, decrease rapidly in favor. Not 

 that flowers are used less— quite the reverse, but 

 they are used in different ways. But the eager- 

 ness of the great city florists this autumn to buy 

 up all the good decorative plants possible, shows 

 decidedly the tendency for the coming winter. 

 It is to be a winter of plant dccoratif)ns, un- 

 doubtedly. Big Ferns, Dicksipnias and Also- 

 philas will be used; Palms in greater profusion, 

 Arecas, Kentias, Seaforthias, and so on. For 

 smaller plants, Pandanas and Draca'nas are sure 

 to be in favor, as well as the smaller Palms. Small 

 Kentias are very much used; with Adiantum 

 cuneatum in table plateaus. Good decorating 

 Ferns, Adiantums, Pteris, Davallia, and so forth, 

 are in strong demand. 



Is it to be an Orchid winter? Certainly enough 

 Orchid plants have been sold cheap at the auctions 

 to supply the trade with plenty of cheap flowers. 

 I, for one, don't believe that Orchid flowere will 

 ever bring fancy prices again, but there is sure 

 to be a certain demand for them. Whether the 

 prices realized will pay? Well, that is uncertain; 

 there are so many large collections in the 

 vicinity of New York. According to number of 

 plants, DeForrest's place alone might be able to 

 stock the entire market with Cattleya blooms. 

 Then there is Siebrecht and Wadley, with their 

 big stock, to say nothing of the United States 

 Nurseries at Short Hills, with the largest collec- 

 tion of Cypripediums in this country— some 280 

 varieties and a tremendous number of plants. 

 At any rate, people need not think that other 

 flowers will be put entirely in the back ground 

 by the Orchids; they will not supplant Roses. 



The handsomest bouquets show a mixture of 

 Roses and Orchids; but are hardly so large as 

 they were. It is said that they will be much 

 smaller during the winter, as women are 

 becoming tired of carrying such immense erec- 

 tions. A little later we may expect to see the 

 usual avalanche of Chrysanthemums in bouquets 

 and everything else. They require a certain 

 amount of art in arranging, to give the requisite 

 appearance of careless grace. A good many 

 florists of otherwise good taste, make the mis- 

 take of mixing light Ferns with these flowers. 

 It gives them a decidedly coarse look, which 

 should be avoided, heavier foliage is abso- 

 lutely necessary, if any at all is used. Rib- 

 bon is another thing which somehow does not 



c 



co- 



have an lEsthetic afiinity 

 for Chrysanthemums. 



Table decorations are 

 stUl compai'atively sim- 

 ple. With a great many 

 the fashion still prevails of oj;" 

 making the centre piece 

 of choice flowers, which 

 may be removed and pre- 

 sented as favors. Pink 

 flowers are still admired 

 for this purpose, as they 

 have the advantage of 

 showing up well by arti- 

 ficial light. 



Funeral designs are cer- 

 tainly going, but they 

 will die hard. They do 

 not seem to lose favor at 

 all out of large cities, except in rare cases. But 

 city florists say their popularity is certainly 

 diminishing, anil there is c-ertainly a decrease in 

 the barbarous practice of lettering in stiff immor- 

 telles. More faint-colored flowers are used In 

 designs, as a relief to the intense white, and ex- 

 quisite arrangements are made in Pansies and 

 Heliotrope, shading from pale lavender to deep- 

 est purple. Elaborate symbolic designs are 

 rather disccniragcd by high class florists, though 

 there is a certain demand for them. 



Gmily LouisuTaplin. 



Orading for Drain 

 Laying 



